Meanwhile, truly consequential shifts—the quiet accumulation of power, the gradual erosion of institutions, the long-term social and environmental changes that are defining our future—happen outside the news cycle, too slow to drive attention, too complex for the perpetual now of social media feeds. We’re left feeling simultaneously over-informed and under-prepared—exhausted by the constant barrage of information yet somehow missing reality. The irony is that the addiction to immediacy makes us less capable of recognizing what’s immediate in ways that matter, trading understanding for the compulsion to stay current—in currents that don’t actually lead anywhere.

Of course, we don’t really have to live that way. Welcome back to The Signal.

—John Jamesen Gould

More than the news—for less than a coffee …

This week:

+ Meanwhile in Europe, Russia & Central Asia, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East & North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, & the Americas.

+ Why are studios releasing so few original new films? Andrew deWaard on how movie franchises have conquered Hollywood.

+ There’s an Afghan hip-hop scene?

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—but also need their time cared for.

There’s an Afghan hip-hop scene?

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